Well integrity smart joint

ABSTRACT

A well integrity joint including a body, and at least two components of a sensory system, disposed on the joint such that the at least components of a sensory system are connectible by a straight line that does not intersect the body.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of an earlier filing date from U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 63/058,912 filed Jul. 30, 2020, theentire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

In the resource recovery and fluid sequestration industries, wellintegrity over the long term is a significant concern. In order toprovide greater confidence in long term well integrity. The cementoutside a casing of the well is interrogated with acoustic and/or othertransducers run in to a desired location. The art has produced severaldevices that help to bridge any acoustic impediment between thetransducer and the casing to improve overall response. With these theart has produced reasonably accurate snapshots related to wellintegrity. Despite successes in this area, the art would be veryreceptive to further improvements where both accuracy and timeliness canbe enhanced.

SUMMARY

An embodiment of a well integrity joint including a body, and at leasttwo components of a sensory system, disposed on the joint such that theat least components of a sensory system are connectible by a straightline that does not intersect the body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following descriptions should not be considered limiting in any way.With reference to the accompanying drawings, like elements are numberedalike:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a well integrity joint as disclosed herein;

FIG. 2 is an end view of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a view of a wellbore system including the well integrity jointdisclosed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A detailed description of one or more embodiments of the disclosedapparatus and method are presented herein by way of exemplification andnot limitation with reference to the Figures.

Referring to FIG. 1, a well integrity joint 10 is illustrated in sideview. The joint 10 includes a body 12 that is intended to be deployed ina wellbore and cemented in place to become a casing of the wellbore. Thejoint 10 includes at least two components 14 of a sensory system.Components 14 may be active or passive components. For example, twotransducers, or a reflector and a transducer might be employed. Thecomponents may be active or passive acoustic devices and in embodimentsinclude cement bond log components, ultrasonic components, etc. In anyevent, the components are disposed about a periphery of the body 12.Advantage is achieved by ensuring the components 14 are “line of sight”to one another, or alternatively stated, they are connectible by astraight line 15 that does not intersect the body, the angulardisplacement between the components 14 must take into account the radiusof the body 12. The closer the components 14 are to the body 12, thecloser they must be to one another in order to ensure that the “line ofsight is maintained. The longer the components 14 are however, measuredin a direction radial to a longitudinal axis of the body 12 the furtherthe components 14 may be from one another while still maintaining theline of sight. Stated alternatively, the further (measured radially)that a component is from the body, the greater the angularity(azimuthally) between the components can be without the straight lineintersecting the body 12. To this end, employing supports 16 to mountthe components 14 even further radially from the body 12, will increasethe angle that may be approached without violating the overridingprinciple that the straight line must not intersect the body 12. Also,the increasing distance from the casing facilitates interrogation of agreater volume of the cement in the annulus (sometimes the B annulus).With appropriate radial displacement of the components 14 from the body12 (by being long in themselves or by being mounted to supports 16, theangularity between components that are circumferentially disposed aboutthe body 12 may be from greater than 0 degrees to less than 180 degreeswhile maintaining the straight line between the two components 14 notintersecting the body 12. The greater the radial displacement from body12 the greater the angle within the range stated. This is a mathematicallimit, but practicality may dictate a smaller angle range since actualborehole annulus radial dimension is limited.

It is to be understood that not only circumferential displacement ofcomponents 14 is contemplated but axial displacement as well as acombination of circumferential and axial (e.g. helically arranged, forexample) are also contemplated. In each case, the maintenance of a lineof sight between two components that are to be a part of a signalcommunication whether that be one-way (pitch-catch) or reflective (pulseecho) is important. These placements may also be combined among variouspairs of components 14. Further, more than one type of component may bedisposed in a particular location on body 12 or on supports 16 toprovide additional confirmation of signal indication of well integrity.For example, a transducer that is used for a pitch and catch operationmay be disposed upon a certain support 16 and a reflector may also bedisposed on that particular support 16. The reflector may operate in apulse echo operation with another transducer on another support whilethe transducer on the same support communicates with a differenttransducer on yet another support 16. Further, Spectral Radial CBL(cement bond log) sensors 18 may also be employed on the support 16 aswell or separately as illustrated in FIG. 1. In fact, as many sensors ortransceivers as are desired may be disposed at a support providing thereis sufficient room to install them.

Each of the configurations and permutations introduced above facilitatesdirect inquiry of cement outside of the well casing. This has never beenpossible in the art. By ensuring the components 14 has a direct line ofsight without interfering portions of the body or of any support,better, more consistent and reliable information regarding integrity ofthe cement may be obtained. The system accordingly uses actual cementproperties rather than theoretical laboratory-based cement propertiesenabling better analysis of the actual strength, possible channeling,and other properties of the cement being monitored. This is true whetherthe well integrity joints are used intermittently or continuously inreal time. In the event that the well integrity joints 10 are used tocontinuously monitor a well system, proactive actions are facilitated toaddress integrity issues while they are easy to address rather than asin the prior art, more reactively addressing issues, in which case theyare often much more onerous to handle. It is also contemplated inconnection with the monitoring using this system that Scanitemetamaterial may be added to the cement as it is being mixed renderingthe joint 10 and methods disclosed herein even more sensitive.

In an embodiment of the joint 10, and as illustrated, supports 16 arealso fins of stabilizer subs 20. They need not be a part of thestabilizer subs 20 but as shown the combination of utilities thisconfiguration for efficiency. In this embodiment, CBL sensors 18 aredisposed about the body 12 separately from the supports 16.

Communicating the information collected in the joint 10 may be by shorthop communications, through casing acoustic communication, dedicatedsignal carriers in the cemented annulus, radio signal communication,etc.

Referring to FIG. 3, a wellbore system 30 employing the well integrityjoint (up to many of them) is illustrated. The system 30 includes aborehole 32 in a subsurface formation 34. A casing 36 is disposed in theborehole 30 and cemented in place with cement 38. The casing 36 includesat least one well integrity joint 10 therein.

Set forth below are some embodiments of the foregoing disclosure:

Embodiment 1: A well integrity joint including a body, and at least twocomponents of a sensory system, disposed on the joint such that the atleast components of a sensory system are connectible by a straight linethat does not intersect the body.

Embodiment 2: The joint as in any prior embodiment further including atleast two supports on or as a part of the pipe joint, the at least twosupports extending radially outwardly of the body, one of the at leasttwo components of a sensory system being disposed on one of the at leasttwo supports.

Embodiment 3: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the straightline does not intersect any of the at least two supports.

Embodiment 4: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are transducers.

Embodiment 5: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are a transducer and a reflector.

Embodiment 6: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are active acoustic components.

Embodiment 7: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are ultrasonic components.

Embodiment 8: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are cement bond log components.

Embodiment 9: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are passive acoustic components.

Embodiment 10: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are arranged about a circumference ofthe body.

Embodiment 11: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are arranged along a length of thebody.

Embodiment 12: The joint as in any prior embodiment wherein the at leasttwo components of a sensory system are arranged angularly relative toone another wherein the angular range is from greater than zero degreesapart to less than 180 degrees apart.

Embodiment 13: The joint as in any prior embodiment further including atemperature sensor disposed on or as a part of the casing body.

Embodiment 14: A method for monitoring well cement including propagatinga signal between the at least two components of a sensory system as inany prior embodiment.

Embodiment 15: The method as in any prior embodiment wherein the signalis propagated through cement disposed between the at least twocomponents of a sensory system.

Embodiment 16: The method as in any prior embodiment wherein the signalis continuous over time.

Embodiment 17: A method for operating a wellbore system includingdisposing one or more well integrity joints as in any prior embodimentin a borehole, and monitoring integrity of the borehole over time usingthe one or more well integrity joints.

Embodiment 18: A wellbore system including a borehole in a subsurfaceformation, and a casing string in the borehole, the casing stringincluding a well integrity joint as in any prior embodiment.

The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in thecontext of describing the invention (especially in the context of thefollowing claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and theplural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted bycontext. Further, it should be noted that the terms “first,” “second,”and the like herein do not denote any order, quantity, or importance,but rather are used to distinguish one element from another. The terms“about”, “substantially” and “generally” are intended to include thedegree of error associated with measurement of the particular quantitybased upon the equipment available at the time of filing theapplication. For example, “about” and/or “substantially” and/or“generally” can include a range of ±8% or 5%, or 2% of a given value.

While the invention has been described with reference to an exemplaryembodiment or embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in theart that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substitutedfor elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention.In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particularsituation or material to the teachings of the invention withoutdeparting from the essential scope thereof Therefore, it is intendedthat the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosedas the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but thatthe invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope ofthe claims. Also, in the drawings and the description, there have beendisclosed exemplary embodiments of the invention and, although specificterms may have been employed, they are unless otherwise stated used in ageneric and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation,the scope of the invention therefore not being so limited.

What is claimed is:
 1. A well integrity joint comprising: a body; and atleast two components of a sensory system, disposed on the joint suchthat the at least components of a sensory system are connectible by astraight line that does not intersect the body.
 2. The joint as claimedin claim 1 further comprising: at least two supports on or as a part ofthe pipe joint, the at least two supports extending radially outwardlyof the body, one of the at least two components of a sensory systembeing disposed on one of the at least two supports.
 3. The joint asclaimed in claim 2 wherein the straight line does not intersect any ofthe at least two supports.
 4. The joint as claimed in claim 1 whereinthe at least two components of a sensory system are transducers.
 5. Thejoint as claimed in claim 1 wherein the at least two components of asensory system are a transducer and a reflector.
 6. The joint as claimedin claim 1 wherein the at least two components of a sensory system areactive acoustic components.
 7. The joint as claimed in claim 6 whereinthe at least two components of a sensory system are ultrasoniccomponents.
 8. The joint as claimed in claim 6 wherein the at least twocomponents of a sensory system are cement bond log components.
 9. Thejoint as claimed in claim 1 wherein the at least two components of asensory system are passive acoustic components.
 10. The joint as claimedin claim 1 wherein the at least two components of a sensory system arearranged about a circumference of the body.
 11. The joint as claimed inclaim 1 wherein the at least two components of a sensory system arearranged along a length of the body.
 12. The joint as claimed in claim 1wherein the at least two components of a sensory system are arrangedangularly relative to one another wherein the angular range is fromgreater than zero degrees apart to less than 180 degrees apart.
 13. Thejoint as claimed in claim 1 further comprising: a temperature sensordisposed on or as a part of the casing body.
 14. A method for monitoringwell cement comprising; propagating a signal between the at least twocomponents of a sensory system as claimed in claim
 1. 15. The method asclaimed in claim 14 wherein the signal is propagated through cementdisposed between the at least two components of a sensory system. 16.The method as claimed in claim 14 wherein the signal is continuous overtime.
 17. A method for operating a wellbore system comprising: disposingone or more well integrity joints as claimed in claim 1 in a borehole;and monitoring integrity of the borehole over time using the one or morewell integrity joints.
 18. A wellbore system comprising: a borehole in asubsurface formation; and a casing string in the borehole, the casingstring including a well integrity joint as claimed in claim 1.